The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1887-10-28
TOEfl O.~E-S ELL.
4 Se. Captain Tells How II Is Obtained
Glimpse, or a Tortoi>e-SheI
HIanufacfory-


"What have / aboard? Mostly tortoise
shell" sa:d the captain OF thrcc-maSlcl
coaster; Just ~ from the West Indies. To
4 N'l and EIlTo>s reporter. Il have
been II tins business twenty years. We
cTrs-~,. a.. aluu. the l~thmUS and anon"
tie W,st India islands after the she'll
1hr natives make 4 business ot collecting
Il n Cu'ra and Jamaica AMI ali along the
coast oi the mainland from Costa l;ica to
Ur.l:Iu. They fit out canoes witt
cuou "a provisions and water To last six
w"cas, AMI 20 oil 10 thc small sea islands
!ry capture the turtles in nets or with
haIi'opus. They are very export. |
hItc seen them drive haTpOou through
a turtles shell over thirty feet away
hey l:aT.IhcIr turtles into the boat and
take Item ashore, where they kill them.
They heat the shell before 4 fir, which
they built on the beach, and strip OF the
plates, which are the tortois --Shcll OF
commerce. At night they haul the
canoe up on the beach ami sleep under
il. Occasionally Il hurricane conlcs ul,
and as their island i generally less than
fifty feet across and only two or three
feet above wafer, the fishermen are swept
III IN the s-a and lost.
TIE SAN BIAS INDIANS
have 4 method OF their own for rcmov-
ing the plates from turtle shells They
plsrc i live turtle before the fire heat
the shell until it soitcnS, and then strip
off the plates When this is done thcv
put the turtle back into the S,,a, and un-
less the tuu!. dies new plates grow in 4
year. There are always thirteen plates
on the back, and seven points around the
edge oi the shell thai can bc u~cl The
belly plates are also used for certain pur-
poses. They have four kinds OF turtles
down there the green turtle, the logger
head, the roundrump and the hawk $
bill. The last is tho kind that pro luccs
tortoise-shrll. The best shell comes from
the Mesquite coast. The turtle season
begins in March and lasts until October,
burin" the first halt all the fishing Is done
with nets and harpOons; later the turtles
arc captured on the beaches, where they
deposit their eggs. The creatures are
turned on their backs here. 1t takes hall
a dozen men 10 turn some OF the large
ones
There is one piece of beach half a
mile long, just below Great Town, TO
which the turtles make piigTimagcs in
great numbers. From 1000 10 300 are
turned there every year, This place is
called Turtle Hill, from the fact that
there II a large hill back Of the beach, on
top OF which Is 4 huge stone Just the
shape of 4 turtle. Most Of the turtles
caught weigh upward OF 2OO pounds, and
many weigh 600 or 3OD. The small tar
ties have nom two To- three pounds Of
shell and the large ones as high as eight
pounds. We pay the natives - pound
Tor the shell. Sometime the price We
sell II for here i less than We pay for il,
but aS wc pay IN deprecated currency
and merchandise, we stall have profit.
At other times. when shell is scarce
here the price goes mp To So a pound.
About half Of the shell gathered comes 20
the United states, the remainder goes to
England, France and Germany"
ONE OF TIE LARGEST TORToISE-%IIEII MAN
UFACTUEIEs
in existence is located within half a mile
# the City Hal. A visitor 10 this cstab-
iiShmcnt found fifty men and boys and
aRv number of wlIirling, buZziug, saving
machines NJ work on the shell IN all the
different stages OF transportation from its
rough state, when received, To the beau
Iiully designed ornament when finished.
The shell IS first cleaned and ground by
= dozen men standing before tubs OF
water and alternately dipping the pieces
ot the same shade and color are selected,
50 that when welded into one piece il
VIII have a perfectly uniform appearance
and cannot be distinguished from a na-
tural shell. The shell passes to a long
row OF men and boys. Some operate
minute scroll SONS that cut out beautiful
designs; others manage turning cutting
siicing and stamping machines and
emory and cotton polishing wheels. Now
the work passes to the cncravcrS, who
cut the shell into beautiful designs OF
scroll work, flowers and fruit. The en-
gravcrs are experts, brought over from
France. They are paid from so to -
week. \ poor engravcr will ruin more
work in day than his salary amounts
10 III week. The business has chiefly
grown up within fifteen years.